I received the following email today:

The
Peloton
Project

The local cycling environment has grown increasingly hazardous over the past years as more and more cyclists are riding on local roads with an increased level of vehicular traffic as development spreads out into what used to be rural roads. A growing number of cyclists who enjoy group rides believe that it would be beneficial for our safety and public perception if the local cycling community adopts higher standards of behavior on group rides. To promote these ideas, we have formed a group called The Peloton Project. If such an effort includes outreach to local law enforcement, it should be possible to build a constructive rapport between police and cyclists that would ultimately promote responsible roadway cycling. If we cyclists can better police ourselves, our credibility will be stronger with police when we explain our legal rights, operational issues and safety concerns on public roadways. More consistent and predictable cycling may also reduce some motorists’ stress levels and improve their conceptions about sharing the road.

The Peloton Project is devoted to creating a safer environment on the road by engaging in a campaign to promote positive attitudes toward cyclists and to replace the hostility that exists between motorists and cyclists by encouraging cyclists to ride safely, predictably and responsibly when on the road. The Peloton Project will concentrate on education programs for both cyclists and motorists and will advocate the adoption of a set of responsibilities for each group, so that each group understands the vital role they play for their co-existence on the roads. Working with local law enforcement, The Peloton Project will work to improve how cyclists are viewed on the road by encouraging group ride leaders and all cyclists to adopt a higher riding standard to ensure a safer and more harmonious environment for all those on the road.

We have just launched our website (www.thepelotonproject.com) to promote discussion between cyclists on how we can change the perception of the local cycling community and hope to work over the winter months to include as many cyclists as possible. Forward on to your cycling friends, we welcome your comments.

Dwayne Allen
Terry Ryan
Steve Goodridge
Tom Wood
Todd Spain
Jen Therrien

Is this the latest incarnation of:

http://www.trianglecycling.com/Road-...rs-t34921.html

I have The Peloton Project sent to me from at least 2 other sources. I would like to wait a little longer to see exactly what this group is all about.

I don't know. I asked Jay if we should create a new section for Cycling Safety.

It's the same group. We need to polish the web site and add more content, especially about group cycling best practices, but the current effort is focused on networking with interested parties and planning for a spring 2010 launch aimed a encouraging better group riding practices and a better total experience for ride participants.

The focus of the group is more than safety, it's also about gaining respect and encouraging group riding over the long term by increasing public understanding and building stronger relationships between police, cyclists, shops, clubs, transportation planning organizations, and public health organizations.

Update from Dwayne:

Below is some background on The Peloton Project, giving some details on how we have progressed in the past 6 months as we continue to work towards creating positive attitudes between cyclists and motorists. I think it shows that we have put a lot of thought into what we are trying to accomplish, are very organized and have received very favorable responses with those we have talked with. Feel free to share this with anyone and let people know that they can follow us in the future either at our website (www.thepelotonproject.com) or our Facebook page (ThePelotonProject)

Dwayne

The Peloton Project

The origins of The Peloton Project date back to an incident in 2008 when two triathletes were deliberately run off the road as they cycled on US1 near Apex. In response to a friends email to that incident calling for legislative action, I suggested that it would be more feasible to start a dialogue with local police departments to see how we, as the cycling community, could improve the situation on the road.

In early 2008, myself, Terry Ryan and Sandra McKinnon, established a group ride originating at The Bicycle Chain in Apex. We had become frustrated at the behavior of the larger group rides in the area and decided to create a group ride that stressed organization, predictability and safety. We addressed the participants of our ride before each ride reminding them that our behavior on the roads reflected on the cycling community as a whole. At the start of one of these rides, an Apex police officer stopped by to ask us what our route was that day, so that he could have a presence along the route for our safety. In our conversation, I asked if the Apex police had a community police officer, and the officer, Wayne English, put me in contact with Officer Deborah Hansen.

In October-December of 2008, myself, Todd Spain and Terry Ryan had 5 meetings with Deborah Hansen and Wayne English of the Apex police department, discussing all aspects of cycling in the local area. It was a very helpful discussion for both the police and the cyclists. We wanted to have someone present that was knowledgeable on biking laws, and David Cole of the North Carolina Bicycle Club suggested that we contact Bruce Rosar, which we did. Bruce attended three of our meetings and was very helpful in educating the police on the actual bicycle laws in North Carolina. As a group, we discussed how we could get a dialogue going between cyclists and the police, and more importantly, start a discussion amongst cyclists about predictability and safety on the road.

Myself, Todd, Terry and Bruce continued to discuss how we could encourage this discussion throughout the spring months of 2009. Todd and Bruce Rosar were talking about this topic as they rode on a large group ride on July 15th....it was at the end of this group ride that Bruce had his fatal accident. In the aftermath of that accident, we decided that we should step up our efforts as we thought it was an important issue and was also something that Bruce felt strongly about.

During the months of July, August and September, we met as a group every two weeks to discuss how we could change the perception of cyclists on the road by promoting predictability and safety with more organized rides. Todd and myself gave several television interviews talking about the importance of this topic with NBC17. Since that time, Donald Jones, a news anchor at NBC17, has become a very strong supporter of our cause. Tom Wood and Steve Goodridge also joined our effort. Tom Wood is a very experience cyclist that is involved in the organization of the New Bern MS150 and was present at the scene of Bruce Rosar's accident. Steve Goodridge is an instructor for the American League of Bicyclists. Both have been a great addition to our project.

In August we also were joined by Jen Therrien, who has designed our website (www.thepelotonproject.com) to help us get our message out to the community. The website was launched in early October 2009.

As part of our incentive to encourage group ride leaders to speak to their participants about the concepts of The Peloton Project, we are proposing to give them Peloton Project jerseys. This will encourage them to discuss our concepts and allow other cyclists to become aware of what we are trying to do. We have approached Hincapie Sportswear through a contact of ours, Rich Hincapie, and have gotten a commitment from them to give us a discount on jerseys, have some personally signed by professional cyclist George Hincapie, and also have George give us a statement of support that we can use on our website and printed materials. (see email response below)

Jen also came up with our jersey design....


In December 2009, we had separate meetings with both the Cary and Apex police departments. For the Cary department, we met with Lt. Randall Rhyne, Juliet Anders and Lori Cove. For the Apex police department, we met with Officer Deborah Hansen and Officer Matthew Arrington. Both meetings went extremely well and both departments pledged to work closely with us as we move forward. We have been invited to the February meeting of the Wake County Traffic Safety Task Force to discuss more of our concepts with the local police.

Also in December we talked with the North Carolina Bicycle Club (NCBC) about a potential working relationship. We are also targeting local bicycle shops, sports retailers and the Carolina Hurricanes. In order to allow organizations to donate to our cause, we have set up The Peloton Project as a non-profit entity. We have obtained an Employer Identification Number, registered as a non-profit corporation with the State of North Carolina (January 11th, 2010) and also with the Internal Revenue Service (January 13th, 2010). We have established a Facebook page (ThePelotonProject) to let concerned cyclists know of our efforts and currently have 69 followers. We will use this social media outlet, along with our website, to let the community know of upcoming Peloton Project events.

In the spring of 2010, we will continue to talk with local law enforcement, group ride leaders, and cyclists. We are planning to hold a "Town Hall" meeting, where law enforcement officers, The Peloton Project members, and local cyclists can hear and discuss issues that affect the local cycling community. We, as members of The Peloton Project, have had interesting meetings with the police and thought it would be useful it the whole cycling community can see cycling from both perspectives. It should also change attitudes of cyclists towards the local law enforcement officers. Using our relationship with Donald Jones (news anchor at NBC17), a news story of this Town Hall meeting can be televised so that the local community will be aware of the efforts of cyclists to improve their behavior on the local roads which should make motorists aware as they share the road with us.

Here is an update from The Peloton Project......could you post to let the community know that the local police departments are working with the cyclists?

Thanks!
Dwayne

The Peloton Project continues to have an ongoing constructive dialogue with local police departments and both sides are learning about the other's concerns. The departments have been very attentive and want to work with the cycling community.....with that type of support though, comes the responsibility of the cycling community to ride predictably and safely on the roads. The following is a letter from a concerned motorist and the response from Sergeant Mark Flaugher from the Apex Police Department.

Hello Apex Police Dept.
I wanted to ask you about a problem that I see every weekend on Saturday and Sunday mornings on my way out to Jordan Lake. I leave the house at around 8:30 – 9:00 and almost every time I get stuck behind packs of bicyclists. They take over the entire lane and will not move over even slightly for me or other cars to get safely by. It doesn’t matter if there are 5 or 35 bikers. They will not budge.I’ve even seen them over in the opposing traffic lane as well. In the opposing traffic lane, they will of course move back into their right lane if a car is coming the other way, but they will not do so in the lane they are travelling in. I don’t mind sharing the road with bicyclists, but it seems they feel that their old saying of “Share the Road” does not apply to them. What are they supposed to do when a car is coming up behind them?Should they be riding as close to single file as possible, on the right, to make it safer for cars to get by? There aren’t many passing zones on Olive Chapel. If you tell me that it is their right to take block the entire lane, then I guess I will have to try and find an alternate route. If they are not doing what they are supposed to, I would appreciate an officer stopping them and telling them. Thank you,

Sgt. Flaugher's response:
I just want to clarify the bicycle law pertaining to riding two abreast. There are no state laws regarding bicycles riding two or more abreast. Apex has a town ordinance that says cyclists may not ride more than two abreast in the town limits only. Once they get out of town they can ride more than two abreast. Unfortunately the only other laws that come into play in the area you are talking about are not very clear. If we look at GS 20-150, nobody can pass on a dual lane highway if there is a double yellow line. This law clearly states you may not pass a vehicle. The lack of clarity is to the cyclists advantage here since this law gives no leeway. A bicycle is a vehicle. On the other hand GS 20-146 says you can pass an obstruction. The problem is that GS 20-146 does not specify what an obstruction is or where you may pass. This is the only area of bicycle/vehicle law that we are having a problem with as far as clarity. I am trying to get ideas from other departments in our area as well as clarification from the District Attorneys' office. In the mean time, Officer Hansen and I are going to talk to a cycling group on Wednesday night. From what Officer Hansen has told me, this group is not happy with other cyclists being arrogant and willfully causing motorists problems. The intent of this particular group is to try to educate cyclists to work with traffic instead of against traffic. By the same token please keep in mind that cyclists do have a right to be on the road, and motorists must use caution and some amount of patience when operating around cyclists. If you have any other concerns please feel free to contact me at any time.
Sgt. Mark Flaugher

I like the response Sgt. Flaugher gave - it was " by the book". The complaint was a good complaint. Car/truck/busses need to be patient behind cyclists especially when passing on hills and blind corners and other type of dangerous roads. Cyclists need to learn how to merg into either single or double line echelons when cars/trucks/busses gather behind cyclists. Some cyclists may not want to merg because they are uncomfortable in doing this in a large group. This can be overcome by time/practice. The car driver needs to be able to see beyoud the cyclist. Even with a double echelon there should be at least 1/2 of the lane visible for the driver to be able to look beyoud the cyclists. Both cyclists and car drivers will co-exist better with education , time , courtesy and some commonsense.

I hope one of the first things the Peloton Project does is talk to the local bike shops about their responsibility to control the rides they promote. I was on a shop ride this year where the ride leader (one of the shops mechanics) would stay to the left and essentially block the entire lane for no legitimate reason. I heard this guy has a reputation for doing this.

Much of the driver frustration I hear comes from getting behind a large group ride where they are struck at a crawl for miles on end (just like the complaint to the Apex PD above). I hardly ever hear drivers complaining about small groups of 3-5 bikes as they are easy to pass safely. But no echelons please, pacelines are much more traffic friendly :-)

A echelon is a single file line of cyclist- not to be confused with a peloton which is the group as a whole. When in a single or doubles echelon is performed properly each cyclist can ride very safe and also move to the right to allow cars to pass. There is no need for cyclists to take up the whole lane on busy roads. A educated/experienced/courteous group of cyclists can ride in large numbers and perform safe manoeuvers to allow cars to pass. I have lived in areas that has groups of 50 to 100 on safe rides week after week. The safe rides came from shops handing out information to club members and club members monitoring the rides. 1 rider can not monitor a large group of 5o. As more riders get experience and educated the larger groups will ride safer.